Because we have an Owner with loads of money and a stadium under construction and a metro region of nearly 8 million.
I apologize if this is a newbie question, but does having to play in Canada going to be a problem for some of the foreign players on teams?
I don't understand your question, but soccer is an international sport and foriegn players are found everywhere.
No, because in addition to the normal 4 SI's, Toronto will be allowed to have another 6 (I believe) Americans on their roster.
Perhaps his question is: will non-US, non-Canadian MLS players potentially have trouble obtaining visas to travel into Canada? Since they won't be in Canada long, I would guess they can get in with a tourist visa, which should be easy to obtain.
Interesting question. I would guess not, since players in the NBA, NHL, and MLB seem to travel to the games up north without problem. However those leagues do it, I'm sure MLS will do it the same way.
first off, let me say that I actually like the name "Inter Toronto". i think it will score well in that city, and also in the NA footballing community at large. and i actually think it sounds good. so i have no real problem with the name. that being said, i feel the need to address the following sentiment, which appears to be shared by a lot of you: i don't agree with this, as a general philosophy. you know, I once heard an English fan say (in reference to the MLS team names), "It would have been much better if they would have went with standard football names like United, Rovers, FC or Athletic, etc." to that I would say: WTF is a 'standard football name'??? there is no such thing as a 'standard football name', what a sh1tty, xenophobic, Eurocentric viewpoint that is. Grasshopper Club Zurich, Joe Public, Boca Juniors, Nagoya Grampus Eight, BSC Young Boys Zurich, VFB Admira Wacker, Chivas de Guadalajara .... none of these names make any sense to me, but that doesn't mean they are stupid. being a fan of world soccer is about embracing and learning about other cultures, and the colorful team names are part of that. how lame would our sport be if every city and every club tried to conform to what some snooty Englishman views as "standard football protocol." there's nothing stupid about 'American-style' nicknames, they are a part of our culture. that being said, i don't have a problem with a couple of the copycat team names (DC United, Inter Toronto), but I would hope that MLS keeps those to a minimum. I would rather we focus on celebrating our culture and exporting OUR take on the beautiful game throughout the world. 'Real Salt Lake,' 'Football Club Dallas' .... from an outside perspective, those names don't really give you a window into American culture, they just tell you that we don't have any and had to steal others'.
How many people here have 10 million to buy a team, How many people have money to build a stadium. MLSE can name the club whatever they damm please. honesty if the canucks like the name who cares.
it looks to me like most people like it, who are you responding to? i LOVE the name. i think it sounds cool, and i'll be first in line to buy a kit (if the colours suit me of course ).
I think you're worrying too much about what fans is other parts of the world think. Speaking as an outsider, it is obvious to me that - as a nation - you are already establishing a soccer culture. American Soccer is NOT considered a joke anymore by anyone, except a decreasing number of ignorant morons in your media. The truth is, that in ten years time when 18 teams are playing in 17 SSS and some teams have already started expanding their stadiums to cater for demand, and the US has made a WC semi final, no-one will give a monkeys whether this team is called Inter Toronto or SoccerDork City FC. I can't imagine that team names like Zurich Grasshoppers, Young Boys of Berne, Aston Villa, The Arsenal or Juventus sounded like brilliant names either when they were first created. And whilst we're on the subject of team names, New York Red Bulls is also a top drawer name IMHO, yet there were loads on here who thought otherwise.
i'm not trying to be argumentative, and i don't think this is that big a deal. i just happen to find this an interesting topic... that's the whole point. but, you're actually strengthening the opposing argument. those names probably did sound odd at first (most names do), but the then-owners went with them anyway ... b/c they had some sort of cultural/geographical significance. like Arsenal ... we all know the story, started by members of an actual armament factory in the 1800s, etc. our current MLS teams have the same opportunity those clubs had. they are brand new teams, and the owners have the chance to come up with any name they want, touching on any local history, tradition or cultural aspect they want. some have, and some have not. this isn't an example of Toronto or Salt Lake City coming up with their own bizarre names, then having the guts to stick with them. this is an example of those teams not even trying to come up with something original, and just copying the names of current football clubs. don't compare "Inter Toronto" with names like Grasshoppers and Arsenal .... they have NOTHING in common.
No visa is required by Americans to visit Canada if the stay is less than 180 days. Pro teams would have their player pre-cleared through customs and immigration.
You make a very fair enough point but when you think about it, how many English fans do you think really know about the arms factory that gives The Arsenal (or Arsenal as they are now referred to) their name? I'd be willing to bet that a significant number of their own armchair fans don't even know! My argument is this: in ten years time, people will wonder why Inter Toronto were called Inter Toronto. The answer will be "because it sounded more like a soccer team than 'Toronto Power' or whatever". And in reality, is that really a worse reason to name a team than after a local arms factory?
in 10 years time, none of this will matter (if all goes well). heck, it doesn't even really matter that much right now, depending on your perspective. the main challenges MLS faces are putting a good product on the field, team names are merely ornamental. i will just say this though: soccer is my favorite sport because it is the most colorful sport. i have learned an amazing amount about the culture, geography, sociology, and politics of so many corners of this Earth through following world football. we as Americans have our own culture to share with the rest of the world (just as the English do, just as the Italians do), i wish we would simply embrace that ... rather than trying to conform to some mythical "world football standard." the whole point is: there's no such thing as "standard"; every place on this Earth does it differently. world soccer would be a boring place if every team was named "Tokyo United," "Buenos Aires FC", "Moscow City", etc ... variety and diversity are what make football great.
DC United is just as much a joke and so is your incredible ability to disassociate the inherent Euro-pandering that is your own team's name. the irony is any logic you apply to 'disqualify' these name also EQUALLY applies to your own team name. FC Dallas Real Salt Lake Houston Dynamo Inter Toronto ... and YES... DC United I love how you distinguish that one is more or less than another... it's like arguing over which stripper's name sounds less real - they're ALL fake. But, who cares, it's only a name. EDIT - Give all the names 10 years and no one will care...
"Inter"?! That's pathetic. I would honestly rather they be called "The Clash" or "Mutiny"...Aren't there any ferocious animals that live in Canada...just pick one!? Black Bears? Wolves? Moose!! What about The Junkies?! Do you have junkies in Toronto? If you're going to rip off another teams name, why stop at one? How about Inter Gunners? Inter Blue Devils? Boca Azul? Inter Corinthians of Toronto? It's like the MLS exec's have grown out of a childish phase, ages 5-9, in which they selected names like "The Wiz" and "Burn" and now they're entering into the identity searching early-teens, ages 10-15, in which kids have yet to form their own identity so they excessively adopt that of some larger group. If MLS had a bedroom, they would have just taken down the baby wallpaper and covered the walls with hero-posters of David Beckham, Wayne Roonie, and Henry. "Inter Toronoto" is the equivalent of the 13 year old middle-class suburbanite who has no real experience of poverty yet adopts the identity of a thug from the projects. Imagine walking into a cafe in Rome and saying that you're a fan of "inter", then going on to explain that you mean "inter of Torono, Canada". I'm sure that would get a lot of respect. What's worse is that "Inter" is the team of Milan's middle and working class, so it's like copying the Oakland Raiders or Boca Jrs...teams "of the people" with huge amounts of pride and tradition. It almost seems to disrepect Inter Milan by disregarding the club's rich history and simply "cut and paisting" the name.
Completely agree. Furthermore, why don't they want to give the idea of a continuity between USL 1st, where the Toronto Lynx are playing, and the MLS? I anyway recall the Toronto Blizzard (whcih arrived two times at playing the Soccer Bowl during the NASL). And I remember that Roberto Bettega was playing (well) for them. Bettega is actually in charge at Juventus, and showed to be a great manager. Why don't they call him back to Toronto? Last words: stop using European names! MLS will look like a minor league!
LOL United, FC, and Real, are all titles used by numerous clubs in multiple countries. There are numerous "Real ___" in Spain as well as a handful in Latin America. The UK has numerous "___ United"'s, and just about every spanish speaking club has "FC" in its title. Inter, on the other hand, is the name of one and only one club for soccer fans around the world. Another poster mentioned a Brazilian "internazionale" but I wouldn't be surprised if it was formed by a group of italian immigrants as is often the case with Latin American club names that are replicas of Euro clubs. IMO, "inter" is just as superficial as any concept name like "clash" or "wiz", only worse because it's not even an original team name. What's this about "Toronto Lynx"??!! That's f'n great!! USE THAt!!
So of course you think Salt Lake should've been called the Blitzz? And for Los Angeles, Salsa? Come on. The last thing MLS wants to do is have continuity with a minor league.